UKFast
Encyclopedia
UKFast.Net Ltd or UKFast is a Manchester
-based business-to-business
hosting provider, offering bespoke dedicated and virtual hosting
solutions within the UK web hosting industry. UKFast looks after 250,000 e-commerce web sites.
Its headquarters are located at the top of the city tower
making it the highest office space in Manchester city centre
. Its servers are located in three independent data centers in both Manchester and London, MANOC1, MANOC2 and Telehouse North (London). MANOC
(Manchester Network Operation Centre) was originally set up at Manchester Universities Computer Building, the home of the worlds first computer.
UKFast hosts hundreds of thousands of domain names on its internet servers. Customers such as UKTV and BP employ it to host their websites. The company is expanding by organic growth and sales have risen 67% a year from £1.4m in 2005 to £6.4m in 2008.
UKFast Training and Personal Growth
UKFast owns a training property in Snowdonia which combines as a training centre and recreational escape for staff. Employees experience climbing weekends in Snowdon which promote camaraderie between departments and promotes a healthy lifestyle.
UKFast.TV
Training videos are also available to employees on iPods which are frequently updated with new material.
and his wife Gail. UKFast has won 7 ISPA's awards in 6 consecutive years, including "Best Hosting Provider", "Best Dedicated Hosting Provider Award" and "Best Customer Service"
UKFast was ranked 70th in the Small Companies sub-category of the Sunday Times list of "Best Companies To Work For Award" for 2010
UKFast won the 2008 MEN (Manchester Evening News) Business of the year (£10m category) whilst the managing director Lawrence Jones won "Young Director of the Year 2007".
Deloitte Fast 50 ranked UKFast as 3rd fastest growing company in the North and the 28th in the UK in 2008.
In September 2009 UKFast entered the Sunday Times TechTrack 100 at number 38 making it the fastest growing hosting company in the UK and the fastest growing technical company in Manchester.
UKFast was the only SME in the North West to win a place in the UK's 50 Best Workplaces 2011, according to the Great Places To Work institute.
in May 2009. Lawrence Jones announced on his personal blog that the 3 year sponsorship deal that would have taken UKFast's involvement with the Sharks to 12 years would be cut short. UKFast also sponsors Airwaves-Yamaha one of the British Superbike teams.
UKFast partners with Manchester Camerata
, a Manchester based chamber orchestra.
UKFast sponsors Five Stars Scanner Appeal to help raise £250,000 for a new MRI scanner, to be housed at the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital.
UKFast teams up with skin cancer charity Factor 50 to help them raise awareness and funding for continued research.
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
-based business-to-business
Business-to-business
Business-to-business describes commerce transactions between businesses, such as between a manufacturer and a wholesaler, or between a wholesaler and a retailer...
hosting provider, offering bespoke dedicated and virtual hosting
Virtual hosting
Virtual hosting is a method for hosting multiple domain names on a server using a single IP address. This allows one server to share its resources, such as memory and processor cycles, in order to use its resources more efficiently....
solutions within the UK web hosting industry. UKFast looks after 250,000 e-commerce web sites.
Its headquarters are located at the top of the city tower
City Tower, Manchester
City Tower, is a 30-storey office block situated at Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester, England. It has the highest office space currently available in Manchester standing 107 metres tall. City Tower was completed in 1965, the Plaza complex was constructed by the developers Bernard Sunley and...
making it the highest office space in Manchester city centre
Manchester City Centre
Manchester city centre is the central business district of Manchester, England. It lies within the Manchester Inner Ring Road, next to the River Irwell...
. Its servers are located in three independent data centers in both Manchester and London, MANOC1, MANOC2 and Telehouse North (London). MANOC
MANOC
MANOC is the home to UKFast's servers and network.MANOC I & MANOC II originally started as facilities with in data centres owned by Manchester University. MANOC I was located in the Computer Building on Oxford Road...
(Manchester Network Operation Centre) was originally set up at Manchester Universities Computer Building, the home of the worlds first computer.
UKFast hosts hundreds of thousands of domain names on its internet servers. Customers such as UKTV and BP employ it to host their websites. The company is expanding by organic growth and sales have risen 67% a year from £1.4m in 2005 to £6.4m in 2008.
UKFast Training and Personal Growth
UKFast owns a training property in Snowdonia which combines as a training centre and recreational escape for staff. Employees experience climbing weekends in Snowdon which promote camaraderie between departments and promotes a healthy lifestyle.
UKFast.TV
Training videos are also available to employees on iPods which are frequently updated with new material.
Company history
UKFast was founded in September 1999 by Lawrence JonesLawrence Jones (businessman)
A serial entrepreneur, Lawrence Jones set up his first business while a sixth form student at De La Salle College in Salford. Music Design Company booked classical musicians for Manchester venues and organised events before he sold it to Granada Group in 1998....
and his wife Gail. UKFast has won 7 ISPA's awards in 6 consecutive years, including "Best Hosting Provider", "Best Dedicated Hosting Provider Award" and "Best Customer Service"
UKFast was ranked 70th in the Small Companies sub-category of the Sunday Times list of "Best Companies To Work For Award" for 2010
UKFast won the 2008 MEN (Manchester Evening News) Business of the year (£10m category) whilst the managing director Lawrence Jones won "Young Director of the Year 2007".
Deloitte Fast 50 ranked UKFast as 3rd fastest growing company in the North and the 28th in the UK in 2008.
In September 2009 UKFast entered the Sunday Times TechTrack 100 at number 38 making it the fastest growing hosting company in the UK and the fastest growing technical company in Manchester.
UKFast was the only SME in the North West to win a place in the UK's 50 Best Workplaces 2011, according to the Great Places To Work institute.
Sponsorship
The company signed a record £2.5m sponsorship deal with the Sale Sharks Rugby ClubSale Sharks
Sale Sharks are a professional rugby union club who play in England in the Aviva Premiership.The club is an offshoot of Sale FC, which is based at Heywood Road in Sale, Greater Manchester, but Sharks currently play in Stockport at Edgeley Park, ground sharing with Stockport County F.C.Part of the...
in May 2009. Lawrence Jones announced on his personal blog that the 3 year sponsorship deal that would have taken UKFast's involvement with the Sharks to 12 years would be cut short. UKFast also sponsors Airwaves-Yamaha one of the British Superbike teams.
UKFast partners with Manchester Camerata
Manchester Camerata
The Manchester Camerata is a British chamber orchestra based in Manchester, England. The orchestra was founded in the 1971–1972 season. A sub-group from the orchestra, the Manchester Camerata Ensemble, specialises in chamber music performances....
, a Manchester based chamber orchestra.
Corporate Social Responsibility
UKFast sponsored a high profile celebrity fund raising event in July 2009 hosted by Sarah Ferguson the Duchess of York. The Duchess teamed up with co-founders Gail and Lawrence Jones, directors of UKFast, who contributed financially to the Duchess on the Estate Project. The purpose of the sponsorship was to raise money for a community project in Northern Moor in Sale. The "Duchess on the Estate" was televised on ITV and successfully raised enough funds to complete the centre and raise awareness in the area.UKFast sponsors Five Stars Scanner Appeal to help raise £250,000 for a new MRI scanner, to be housed at the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital.
UKFast teams up with skin cancer charity Factor 50 to help them raise awareness and funding for continued research.